Teacher Defends Throwing Student Off Chair in Class
Today, social media in Omsk featured a video of a teacher at school No. 99 grabbing a student and pulling him off a chair. Comment sections quickly filled with arguments over who was at fault. We investigated by speaking directly with the teacher involved. Read on for what led up to the recorded incident.
NGS55.RU reporters first contacted the school, where the receptionist stated, «The principal is not available; call during business hours. We will not comment on the situation.» The Department of Education promptly addressed the issue in social media comments.
«The Department of Education will investigate the incident captured on video. Should the facts be verified, appropriate measures will be taken. The inquiry panel will involve department experts, school leadership, the Juvenile Affairs Division, and a psychologist.»
NGS55.RU reached the teacher, Nikolai Ivanovich. The video shows the OBZh (Fundamentals of Life Safety) instructor in a dispute with an eighth-grade boy. Students noted that Nikolai Ivanovich also teaches physical education.
It emerged that the teacher had issued multiple warnings to the students, which were ignored.
— «I was conducting the lesson when the students at the front desk kept misbehaving and not listening. I warned them once, twice, three times, and they began throwing paper. I then approached and said, “Please move to a different desk, away from him.” He refused. I repeated the instruction—he still refused. I took him by the shoulder, and he fell into the aisle. That’s the entire story.»
— «But you didn’t push him?»
— «I grasped his shoulder, gently pulling him toward me. I said, “Move to the second row so I can resume teaching.” After that, they sat perfectly behaved for the remaining 30 minutes of class. That’s what occurred.»
«I Hold Them to Standards, They See It as Pointless»
Nikolai Ivanovich has taught for more than 40 years. He stated that no other classes have posed issues.
«This is a particularly challenging group, and I’m not the only one facing difficulties. I maintain discipline in my classes, while others seem to tolerate this class’s behavior. I expect students to participate actively, not passively attend. They even showed up without notebooks—both of them. I insist on effort, but they dismiss it as unnecessary.»
«I teach OBZh to eight classes total, and none of the others give me trouble. I enter every lesson confident and engaged, with students who pay attention. In four decades of teaching, I’ve rarely had conflicts—except with this class, where issues arose from the start of the school year, their first in OBZh, which I instruct.»
The teacher submitted a written explanation to the principal, and the school now faces an official review.
